How your city will transform as mobility tech catches on
What the construction industry needs to be aware of
It would be sensible for the construction industry to embrace these changes with some modicum of preparedness. The growing call for employee safety, filling the skills gap, sustainability and more in construction, mean that the sector needs to embrace innovations such as those coming from AVs and emerging mobility. Ignoring such market changes will be at unprepared firms’ peril.
To remain efficient, business operations will require short-, medium- and long-term preparations for the AV construction space. Influences range from supply chain impacts, to sustainability in construction.
Space reallocation will come in varied forms such as the reduction of dealerships and parking garages, both public and residential alike. The unlocking of urban land from space reallocation will affect the dynamics of the housing market, such as the increased availability of urban housing. This will also affect the distribution of real estate prices whether looking at land prices or rents, and rearrange urban densities (for example suburban properties become more attractive when the time cost of commuting is cut down due to the use of AV vehicles).
Transportation can operate 24/7 in a fully AV world, allowing more to be done in less time in logistics and supply chains. This impact on the transportation of building products could reduce construction costs in logistics, and improve management of timelines.
There will also be shifts in the kinds of demand for construction work, such as which areas of infrastructure will require upgrades, and which would require outright replacements.
In a fully electrified transportation future, traditionally recognised sources of road infrastructure funding such as fuel taxes will falter. Government funding investment in construction and other sectors will be affected by these changes in funding models.
Some of these changes will be opportunities, such as the unlocking of urban land for new construction as petrol stations and dealerships become things of the past in a new mobility future. Other changes will be hurdles to cross such as the pressure on highways and transport infrastructure to keep up with the rapidly changing technologies; a call to future proofing construction.
The point is that market patterns in construction will shift due to emerging mobility.
A recent consumer market research study by H+C., an international autonomous vehicles and urban mobility consulting firm, shows that consumers think dedicated AV-only lanes are a good idea, implying that the population is ready for the mobility revolution that is already under way.
